Assembly Resolution No. 647

BY: M. of A. Rosenthal L

MEMORIALIZING Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim
November 11, 2023, as Lung Cancer Screening
Awareness Day in the State of New York

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize
official days that are set aside to increase awareness of serious health
issues that affect the lives of citizens of New York State; and

WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, it is the sense of this Legislative Body to
memorialize Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim November 11, 2023, as Lung
Cancer Screening Awareness Day in the State of New York; and

WHEREAS, According to the American Cancer Society, 238,340 Americans
will be newly diagnosed with lung cancer this year and lung cancer is
the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Lung cancer is the number one cause of cancer-related death
in New York State, with more than 14,100 estimated new cases of the
disease in New York State in 2023, and an estimated 6,330 New Yorkers
will die from lung cancer this year; and

WHEREAS, Any person is at risk for developing lung cancer, as there
are many risk factors including smoking, family history, environmental
causes and other lifestyle factors; and

WHEREAS, Nearly half of lung cancer cases are not detected until it
is too late, and the survival rate is only six percent for those
diagnosed at a late stage; and

WHEREAS, The screening and early detection of lung cancer are vital
to the health and well-being of New York State residents; and

WHEREAS, More needs to be done to educate high-risk Americans about
lung cancer, as it accounts for more deaths than breast, prostate, and
colorectal cancer combined; and

WHEREAS, The United States Preventative Services Task Force
recommends annual screening for lung cancer with low-dose computed
tomography (LDCT) in adults aged 50 to 80 years who have a 20 pack a
year smoking history and currently smoke or have quit within the past 15
years; screening people who are at high risk for lung cancer can find
lung cancer at an early stage and improve their chances of surviving;
and

WHEREAS, Lung cancer screening with low-dose CT scans has been
recommended for those at high risk since 2013, but according to a new
report released in 2020 by the American Lung Association (ALA), only 5.7
percent of the eight million people who are at high-risk for developing
the disease are actually undergoing screening; and

WHEREAS, Lung cancer screening with low-dose CT scans has been shown
to decrease mortality by 20 percent; and


WHEREAS, Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, cross-sectional
analyses have revealed a 46-percent plummet in new cancer diagnoses
nationwide across six common forms of cancer, including lung cancer; and

WHEREAS, The National Cancer Institute (NCI) states that lung cancer
screenings can find abnormal tissues or lung cancer at an early stage,
before a person has symptoms, and can make lung cancer easier to treat
and achieve higher survival rates; waiting to treat until after symptoms
appear may increase the likelihood the cancer has already metastasized;
and

WHEREAS, This year marks the 52nd Anniversary of passing the
National Cancer Act, yet screening for and education of lung cancer
continues to be alarmingly low compared to other forms of cancer; and

WHEREAS, It is imperative that there be greater public awareness
about the risk of lung cancer to New Yorkers and the importance for New
York citizens to talk to their healthcare provider about recommended
lung cancer screenings, and be screened with low-dose CT scans as
appropriate; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
memorialize Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim November 11, 2023, as Lung
Cancer Screening Awareness Day in the State of New York; and be it
further

RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to The Honorable Kathy Hochul, Governor of the State of New
York; the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network New York; and
the American Lung Association in New York.